BOOM (literally)! Here is how our new SecDef, Mad Dog Mattis, spent his weekend….
General James Mattis was confirmed as Secretary of Defense Friday evening. So, how did he spend the weekend? Celebrating?
Nope! Mad Dog Mattis arrived at the Pentagon Saturday (soldiers don’t understand the concept of weekends), his first day on the job, with a smile and a resolve to go to work to destroy ISIS, per his boss’s instructions.
Overseeing 31 airstrikes against ISIS targets in Iraq and Syria, with a heavy concentration against fighting positions near the ISIS de facto capital of Raqqa, it appears that our new SecDef is intent upon making short work of ISIS.
Video, below: Secretary of Defense Mattis arriving at the Pentagon for his first full day of work, followed by a rundown of one day’s activity against ISIS, according to DOD.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7VnRHt93g-0
Strikes in Syria
Attack, bomber, fighter, and remotely piloted aircraft conducted 25 strikes consisting of 39 engagements in Syria:
— Near Bab, two strikes engaged an ISIL tactical unit, destroyed an artillery piece and damaged a tactical vehicle.
— Near Raqqa, 22 strikes engaged 12 ISIL tactical units; destroyed nine fighting positions, two tunnels, two tanks an improvised-bomb factory and an ISIL headquarters; and suppressed three ISIL tactical units.
— Near Dayr Az Zawr, a strike destroyed two oil well heads.
Strikes in Iraq
Attack, bomber, fighter and remotely piloted aircraft conducted six strikes consisting of 16 engagements in Iraq, coordinated with and in support of the Iraqi government:
— Near Rutbah, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a tactical vehicle, two weapons caches and a mortar.
— Near Beiji, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle.
— Near Kisik, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a vehicle and an ISIL-held building.
— Near Mosul, two strikes engaged two ISIL tactical units; destroyed a vehicle-borne-bomb factory, a vehicle-borne bomb, a tank, three fighting positions and a vehicle; and suppressed an ISIL tactical unit.
— Near Tal Afar, a strike engaged an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed a semi-truck and a command-and-control node.
